Every year, Epicor surveys thousands of global leaders in the manufacturing, distribution, and retail industry about the key factors that contribute to their business growth, the potential barriers they face and the future technology in which they plan to invest.
Similar to last year’s findings, the 2020 Epicor Global Growth Index revealed that although political and economic uncertainty remain as the top concerns for companies across the globe, still, the Covid-19 pandemic has turned many businesses to invest in tech, in order to balance the impacts of the “New Now”.
In specific, 61.2% of the surveyed organizations reported Covid-19 as the most possible factor to have a negative impact on their business growth over the next year. In order to overcome this challenge, businesses have set as priorities to invest in better technology (41%), working more efficiently (40.9%) and better planning (38.9%). As it is pinpointed within the Index “businesses are relying heavily on the cloud to support remote work capabilities during challenges presented due to Covid-19”.
The 2020 edition surveyed 2.002 participants and the key insights are:
- Cloud technology (24.9%), 5G (27.5%) and Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (21.7%), are identified as the top 3 strategic priorities to invest in, in 2020.
- When businesses were asked about key technology trends that will be emerging over the next 12-18 months, Cloud was chosen as the second most likely (24.9%) to have the biggest positive, direct impact on future industry growth. 5G (37.6%), Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (31.2%), Smart Supply Chain (30.9%) and Digital Transformation (30%) were among the top five identified trends.
- Artificial Intelligence is driving business growth for more than 85% of the companies surveyed. According to 80.5% of the respondents, AI delivered business value in 2 years or less. In specific, for 64% of the manufacturers surveyed said they use AI to help increase profitability and reduce costs. At the same time, retail has an especially high use, with more than 90% saying they use AI to drive business growth.
- Big data analytics is driving growth for more than 86% of the companies surveyed. The study revealed that big data helps organizations drive growth in optimizing operations (43%), increasing sales (44%), improving profitability (45%). In addition, 81% of the respondents reported that it took 2 years or less for Big Data to drive business value.
Last but not least, businesses we asked what initiatives can be implemented to take advantage of new technologies and increase business resilience:
- More than 40% said investing in staff training and education
- Over 33% said hiring additional staff with new skills
- Nearly 34% said putting together the right team to manage process
Based on these valuable insights, Epicor presents the key technologies that can help businesses stay ahead in a fast-changing world with “uncontrollable market conditions”. By linking technological trends like Cloud, AI and Big Data analytics to a next-generation enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution, Epicor delivers a comprehensive set of global functionality – enabling businesses to improve their operational efficiency with real-time access, insights and collaboration, from any remote location, and gain a 360-degree view of their entire customer, supplier or partner relationships.
For almost 20 years, Athens Technology Center (ATC) has been helping Greek and International manufacturers to increase efficiency and gain competitive advantage by providing innovative enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions. In fact, Athens Technology Center (ATC) is Epicor’s Authorized Partner and the Exclusive Distributor of Epicor ERP in Greece and Cyprus. Within this framework, ATC has been awarded with 15 certifications for successful deliverables in the areas of supply chain, industrial production, shipping, health, SMEs, insurance and the wider financial sector.
You can find the complete study here!
Contact us to learn more about how Epicor ERP, a visionary blend of agile technology and global functionality, can help you optimize your performance, whether you operate on a local, regional, or global scale.
